EU Environment Commissioner urges more action to save biodiversity

It is an almost invisible crisis that threatens our food security, our health and the quality of the atmosphere in which we live. The collapse of biodiversity threatens to wipe out one million living species.

Euronews spoke to the European Commissioner for the Environment, Virginijus Sinkevičius to discuss the deal recently agreed by the EU institutions which bans products linked to deforestation, and ask how it will impact people's daily lives and what it will mean for biodiversity.

"Now Europeans will know that when buying chocolate, coffee in the stores, they will know that these products don't come from deforested land", said Virginijus Sinkevičius. "I think this is our pride and this is our credibility to ensure that...our consumption patterns here in Europe do not drive forest losses around the globe. But we also have a credible legislation which ensures that our trading -- or to say our consumption -- does not drive the processes."

Biodiversity should be at the centre stage of international concern because of the UN's COP15 summit in Montreal, that the Commissioner will be attending. But it doesn't appear to be attracting as much attention as the COP27 climate conference that just took place last month. 

"I think it's not a lack of interest, but maybe more of a lack of awareness and understanding. With climate, we are probably ten years ahead of where we are with biodiversity policies", Sinkevičius explained.

"Climate is much easier to negotiate and understand. First of all, you have this overarching goal of 1.5 degrees, which everyone on the street can relate to and understand very well. Secondly, I think the Paris [Climate Agreement] helped increase awarness of the climate a lot because it was a historic agreement.